


Nothing's Gonna Knock This Girl Down

by agentsimmons



Series: Settle Down [2]
Category: The Avengers (Marvel Movies), The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types, The Avengers - Ambiguous Fandom
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Canon Divergence - Post-Avengers (2012), Developing Relationship, F/M, Gen, M/M, POV Clint Barton, Pre-Het, Shippy Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-05-30
Updated: 2016-05-30
Packaged: 2018-07-11 05:37:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,963
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7031185
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/agentsimmons/pseuds/agentsimmons
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Clint had once been strapped to a bed in SHIELD medical, waking up to the realization of the monster he'd been. His best friend had been there to help him through it. Now's his chance to pay it forward.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Nothing's Gonna Knock This Girl Down

**Author's Note:**

> This is a small interlude that takes place during Chapter 16 of _Get In Line, Settle Down_ featuring Jen when she wakes up from the chaos of everything, from Clint's point of view.

Clint was stirred from his thoughts when he heard the mumbled, "Becky?"

He trained his focus with unmatchable accuracy on the woman lying strapped down on the bed in one of the medical bays. She began to twist and pull against the restraints and he pitied her. Not enough to undo them because he had his orders and he wasn't an idiot, but he could remember the feeling of being strapped in and fighting for control as the confusion coursed through him.

"Becky!" Jennifer's eyes shot open and they had moved from their natural green to something vibrant and dangerous, her skin tinting slightly as if to match.

"She's fine, Jen. Don't make me tranq you again," Clint said by way of announcing his presence, hoping he sounded nonthreatening.

She snapped her eyes in his direction and he saw the fear and anger linger there for a long moment. Then she blinked and her eyes were their soft shade again. She furrowed her brow and he could tell she had recognized him. He was inclined to agree with Bruce that she wasn't a threat, she just needed time and understanding. He almost snorted out a laugh because she sure would fit in with the Avengers or SHIELD now. Most of them needed that.

"Clint?" Her voice was raspy from being heavily sedated for so many hours. "You're the one who shot me back there," she then said with a groan, her mental faculties seemingly returning.

His lips quirked up into a thin smile. "Just following doctor's orders."

Jennifer threw him an incredulous look, but ignored whatever impulse she clearly had to reply to that in favor of her concern for her family. "Is he okay? Are they both okay?" She lifted her head up to look at him more carefully.

"Yes," he said, keeping his voice even. "You missed a hell of a show though."

"Your fault," she teased, humor returning to her voice and he smiled again. "But thanks. I get why you had to. I'm sure I must be something pretty awful now, huh?"

His smile immediately turned down. "Don't do the whole monster shtick, Jen. Your cousin already has that covered."

She sighed and her head fell back against the bed. "I guess you're right. It'll just take some getting used to."

"Hey, I get it." He took pity on her again or maybe it was something closer to empathy. "I had Thor's brother in my head once. Turned me into something I didn't know I was capable of being." He schooled his face to remain neutral. It was the only way he could talk about it. "Some days I still wonder if I'm capable of being that version of myself again."  She looked at him as though it wasn't comparable. She was probably right.

"I know I attacked somebody," Jennifer said after a moment of silence.

"Rhodey," he answered. Clint knew better than to lie to her. She wanted to know. He had wanted to know once. "But your form was terrible," he then added with a smirk and she looked at him with a mixture of confusion and slight amusement at his flippancy. "Once Steve stepped in, you probably wouldn't have been able to take them both." He didn't know that for sure, of course, but humor was always a good deflection.

Sure enough, Jennifer responded with a laugh. It was weak, from the medicine the doctors were feeding her and stress of everything no doubt, but Clint decided it was a welcome relief to hear it.

"You don't know that," she called him on his tactic. "But thanks for the vote of confidence."

"Look," he said plaintively after another moment of silence. "Bruce said he didn't think you were truly dangerous when we got there. Just scared for Becky. We all were pretty scared out of our minds for Becky… and you." Her eyes widened slightly. "This thing you've got now, sure it's not something you deserve, but you're in good hands with SHIELD. And you've got the team. We'll help you through it."

She closed her eyes for a moment and he knew she was attempting to reconcile everything. "Think Tony's offer still stands to move into the tower?"

Clint snorted. "He's practically a people collector these days," he replied. "I'm pretty sure the offer still stands."

She opened her eyes again and looked at him curiously. "How is he after all this?" Clint had to admit there was something endearing – and very much like her cousin – about her asking about someone else' well-being when she was the one who'd been experimented on and changed into something against her will. Or maybe it helped her to think about others instead of what happened to her, he considered.

"A mess," Clint answered truthfully. Tony wouldn't let Becky out of his sight when medical had attended to her and then once she was fine he had camped himself in Bruce's room with the girl. He was still there and pretty closed off, not that he could blame him of course. "Poor guy thought he was going to lose everything, you know?"

"I think I do," Jennifer replied meekly. Of course she knew. "So things are still… going well between them?" He could tell she was trying for something that hit a little less close to home.

"I'd say so," answered, offering her a smile. "Pretty sure Tony's all but ready to book a chapel at this point." He laughed outright while Jennifer's was something softer and fonder.

"I'm glad," she said. "I want them to be happy together. I don't know Tony that well, but I know Bruce and Becky and I think this is good for them. And from what I've seen, I trust Tony."

Clint hesitated for a moment before deciding what the hell and told her, "He was willing to die for Becky." She looked reasonably taken back. "Yeah, you'll hear all about it in the debriefing, but Ross had Becky and Tony made a trade. His life for her safety. I don’t think you have anything to worry about there." He paused, letting that sink in. "I'd like to say any of us would have, but when Tony was faced with the choice of either saving you and Bruce or going to save Becky, he didn't even think twice. I can't say I did. We didn't even know Ross had Becky so I thought it would be smarter to make sure before going in with guns blazing. I would have been wrong," he admitted solemnly, "and who knows what might have happened."

Jennifer studied him for a moment. "It was Tony's call to make," she finally said. "I know you all love Becky, but I'm okay if Tony loves her just a little bit more, you know? Or, well, differently I guess. I think if Tony hadn't been able to, you and the others still would have come to the same conclusion as he did. Maybe it would have taken longer, but we all know Tony's mind can go from zero to sixty before any of us have a chance to blink."

Clint nodded. He had to admit she made a decent point. "Fair enough," he conceded and left it at that.

"And... Bruce is happy right?" Jennifer asked then. "I know he was so worried about starting a relationship with Tony. So I'm a little worried now…" Her tone was forlorn as she let her sentence trail. He understood what she meant. With a scare like that, maybe he'd feel his initial fears had been justified and run again.

"Honestly," he said with conviction, "I think everything's going to be okay. Like I said, you missed quite a show. Ross is being held for court martial and President Ellis signed a pardon for Bruce. Not to mention the Hulk proved he would stop at nothing to save both Tony and Becky without minimal damage being done. So…" He shrugged. "If that on top of Tony's willingness to do anything for Becky and the team having his back no matter what doesn't convince him to stick around, nothing will. But I don't think it's going to be a problem." Then he smirked and she narrowed her eyes in suspicion. "Besides, I think the sex alone would make him stay put."

Her eyes widened and she laughed suddenly only to start coughing. He immediately moved to undo the restraints on her arms. She sat up slowly and he handed her a bottle of water he had on hand.

"Thanks," she said after taking a few slow drinks. She then shook her head, still amused, before handing the bottle back. "I didn't need to know that," she said with another small laugh. "Don't get me wrong. I sort of assumed as much. But I'm kind of wondering how you even know that." Jennifer raised an eyebrow.

He continued to smirk. "One, it's a shared elevator," he said, watching her eyes go wide. "Although Natasha put a stop to the hot and heavy make out sessions there I think. Thank God," he added and she laughed. "And let's just say they don't keep it refined to their places. They've come out of their lab or Tony's workshop one too many times with sex written all over them. I don't think they realize how obvious it is. And it happens a lot so…"

Jennifer's face reddened with a mixture of blush and amusement as she started laughing again. "Maybe I don't want to move in after all," she said between her giggles.

"Yeah, and that's not even including them doing the adorable domestic thing 24/7 now."

"Did you just say adorable?" She asked with her own smirk before he had a chance to catch himself.

He sighed. "Yeah, fine. It's fucking cute. And it's easy to tease them about it so that's a plus. Hell, I'll plan their wedding if it comes down to it."

Jennifer laughed. "I don't think either of them would let that happen."

He smiled and shook his head. "Yeah, probably not. I guess the point is I don't think Bruce is going anywhere. And, you know, I'm happy for the guy. He deserves it."

"Yeah," she agreed. "Hey, why are you here?" Jennifer then asked so suddenly that Clint was taken by surprise.

"Why? Is it a problem? I can go get someone else," he tried to deflect, but she fixed him with a soft glare. "You had to have somebody in here just in case and we all figured you wouldn't want a random SHIELD agent."

She eyed him skeptically. "And you have the tranqs?" She looked over at where his bow rested beside his chair.

Clint looked down at it too. "Something like that," he responded with a shrug. "Natasha's exhausted even if she won't admit it and no offense to Steve or Thor, but they haven't exactly been in this situation before. I have from where you're sitting," he offered in empathy.

Her gaze softened. "Well, as long as you're the expert I guess you can stay." She closed her eyes and a smile ghosted across her lips.

Clint's eyebrows moved upward and he felt a smile play at the edge of his own lips in response. Sure the circumstances sucked, but he had a feeling having Jennifer around again was going to be interesting.

"And don't worry," she added, eyes still closed. "I won't tell the others why you're really here." She opened one eye to look at him. "I think it's kind of cute that you want to make sure people are okay." And then she closed her eye again and acted as though she hadn't seen right through him.

It was going to be _really_ interesting.

**Author's Note:**

> I have no clue why I suddenly feel compelled to come back to this verse, but I do. It has a soft spot in my heart since I published it as a challenge and felt really insecure about it and wrote it in like 72 hrs and all that jazz. Not only do I kind of want to see more of Tony and Bruce as dads to Becky and navigating the dangers and domesticity of their crazy world, I also think I might want to explore Jennifer (and very likely Jennifer/Clint) in this verse. One of my biggest regrets is that Jennifer and her She-hulk origin was sort of swept under the rug for sake of quickly wrapping up the fic. While it still stands that she does come to grips with it, like stated in Chapter 16, it might be fun to actually see her initial understanding of her condition and then seeing how it develops over time in real world situations. Idk. May be a thing that I write, but until then I felt compelled to at least write this little piece that doesn't do much of anything really lol.


End file.
